A better exercise for trapezius muscle balance?

A better exercise for trapezius muscle balance?

Trapezius muscle balance is important for normal shoulder function. Often in patients with impingement, the lower trapezius is much weaker than the upper trapezius. Traditional exercises to strengthen the lower trapezius such as prone shoulder flexion may cause further impingement, creating a “catch 22” for clinicians: Is there a better exercise for the lower trapezius that doesn’t impinge the shoulder?

Scientific Advisory Board member, Sue Falsone, PT, ATC, Vice President of Athletes’ Performance in Phoenix presented a pilot study of EMG activation of the upper and lower portions of the trapezius muscle during prone flexion with a cuff weight and 3 novel Thera-Band® tubing exercises at the 13th annual TRAC meeting in San Francisco, California.

The “vector” principle of elastic exercise prescription creates vectors of resistance more specific to muscle function. Vector exercises for lower trapezius were developed to create a line of resistance in the direction of the fibers of the lower trapezius, and in the opposite direction of its action of retraction and depression.

In Falsone’s pilot study, 10 healthy subjects without shoulder pain performed these 4 exercises in random order while Noraxon surface EMG data was captured and then normalized to a maximal contraction:

She found that lower trapezius activation was greater in all 3 vector exercises, while the upper trapezius activation was less than the prone flexion exercise. In fact, the upper trapezius activation during vector exercises was half that of prone flexion!

In patients with shoulder pain related to trapezius muscle imbalance, the lower trapezius vector exercise with Thera-Band elastic resistance may be better to bias the lower trapezius during rehabilitation exercises. Falsone plans to expand her pilot study with more subjects and publish her results next year.

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About Us

Welcome to The Factory, home of Performance EDU. The Factory, a 2,900 square-foot training facility, is where our team, clients, and athletes get their sweat on. We are located in S. Reno at 5301 Louie Lane #178. During private and group training sessions, our clients have access to top-of-the-line equipment from Keiser, Woodway, TRX and more. Our space was built for functionality. Clients can utilize a number of areas, including the Training Lounge, Metabolic Area, Corrective Movement and Private Training Space, Training Floor, or visit us in the Coaches Cave.